What every Nigerian must learn about property commission

By OLUSOJI DAOMI

There is a scene that plays out almost daily in Nigeria’s bustling property market.

A young man, phone in hand, speaks with confidence.

“Sir, I have a very good property for you. Prime location. You will like it.”

He arranges inspection. He takes the client there. He opens the gate. He points at the land. He talks about future value. He speaks like a man who has already earned his commission.

Weeks later, silence.

Then the news comes quietly. The buyer has purchased the property. But not through him. Not with him. Without him.

And the question rises, sharp and painful.

“What about my commission?”

For years, many Nigerians have assumed that once an agent introduces a buyer to a property, payment is automatic. That introduction alone is enough. That effort must be rewarded.

But the law, in its calm and often unforgiving logic, has now spoken with clarity.

In a decision that travelled for nearly two decades through the corridors of litigation, the Supreme Court of Nigeria has drawn a line. A firm line. A defining line.

Mere introduction is not enough.

The case itself reads like a long Nigerian story of expectation and disappointment. A professional estate surveyor and valuer, trading under his firm, claimed that he had sourced a large industrial property in Kirikiri, Lagos, for a corporate buyer. He insisted that he initiated contact, facilitated discussions, and played a role in bringing both sides together.

But somewhere along the line, the transaction moved beyond him.

The buyer went ahead. The deal was concluded. The property changed hands.

And the agent was left outside the gate.

He went to court, claiming a substantial commission running into millions of naira, alongside damages and interest. The trial court, perhaps persuaded by the narrative of effort and involvement, granted part of his claim.

But the story did not end there.

The matter moved to the Court of Appeal. The decision was overturned. The agent pushed further, all the way to the Supreme Court.

Nineteen years.

That is how long it took for the final word to be spoken.

And when it came, it came with clarity.

The Supreme Court held that an estate agent is not entitled to commission merely because he introduced a buyer to a property. The law requires something more. Something deeper. Something decisive.

The agent must prove that his role was the effective cause of the transaction.

Not just that he showed the property.

Not just that he made a phone call.

Not just that he opened the door.

But that without him, the deal would not have happened.

This is where many Nigerians will pause.

Because in everyday thinking, effort equals entitlement. You worked, you must be paid. You connected people, you deserve something.

But the law does not always follow that emotional path.

It asks a different question.

Was there an agreement?

Did both parties sit down, expressly or clearly, and agree that if this deal goes through, you will be paid?

If that agreement is missing, the law becomes cautious.

In this particular case, the court found that there was no clear agency agreement between the parties. No consensus. No meeting of minds. No binding understanding that commission would be paid.

Even more significantly, evidence emerged that the buyer had already begun negotiations for the property before the agent’s alleged introduction.

That detail changed everything.

Because if a buyer was already on the path to acquiring a property, then the agent’s role, no matter how well-intentioned, cannot be said to be the driving force behind the purchase.

And the law, always attentive to causation, will not reward a contribution that did not determine the outcome.

There is another principle the court quietly reinforced, one that Nigerians must take seriously.

If you voluntarily provide a service without being engaged, the person who benefits from it is not automatically under a legal obligation to pay you.

In simple terms, if you walk up to someone and say, “I know a house you can buy,” and they go ahead to buy it without any prior agreement with you, the law may not compel them to pay you.

It may sound harsh.

But it is consistent.

Because law is built on agreement, not assumption.

The implications are immediate and practical.

The man who runs around showing houses in Lekki.

The woman connecting buyers to land in Ibadan.

The young graduate acting as an informal agent in Abuja.

All must pause and reflect.

Before you move.

Before you call.

Before you introduce.

Ask the most important question.